Creative Convergence 2015 is from 8 AM-3:30 PM March 19, 2015, at Eastern Michigan University. We would love for you to join us in person for the conference, but if you cannot, our friends at Detroit Public Television will be live-streaming the speakers all day long.

Convergence is a partnership between CultureSource, the Arts Alliance, Creative Many, Eastern Michigan University and the University of Michigan Penny Stamps Speaker Series.

The conference features a terrific lineup of presenters who will share ideas, provide inspiration, and discuss what the future holds for the creative sector. It’s a great way to bring back important information to share with your colleagues and community leaders.

CultureSource would like to send out a special Thank You to all who supported our Annual Fund and our special fund honoring Maud Lyon. We raised over $24,000 in 2014! We could not support our many members without your generosity!

ZIPR Magazine is a new arts-focused monthly magazine based out of Detroit, featuring gallery guide and artist interviews. Interested in being featured or using your location as a distribution spot? Contact them at ziprmagazine@gmail.com.

Groundbreaking textile artist Ruth Adler Schnee has been named the 2015 Kresge Eminent Artist. “Ruth Adler Schnee has been a pioneer not only in defining the modern look of architectural interiors, but also in redefining postwar America’s sense of public space,” says Rip Rapson, Kresge’s president and chief executive officer. Read more here.

A report released in January by the National Endowment for the Arts shows 47% of adults in southeast Michigan attended a live performing arts event in 2012 compared to the average of 37% in 10 other major urban centers. Michigan also had arts attendance numbers slightly higher than the national average of 32 states measured in the study. Read more here.

The Free Press says: “Graham Beal’s 16-year tenure as director of the Detroit Institute of Arts — highlighted by a landmark $158-million renovation and reinstallation of the collection — has transformed the museum into a populist institution embraced by a larger and more diverse swath of Detroiters than at any other point in its 130-year history.” Read more here.

If you have a special ticket discount, special offer, Groupon, or any kind of deal going on, tell us and we’ll share it on IXITI and social media. Just email clare@ixiti.com with the details and an image.

CreativeMornings has a Detroit chapter, but they are now looking for a new host! As a host, CreativeMornings offers an opportunity to bring together your local creative community, connect what’s going on in your city with the broader creative world, and join a network of talented organizers that spans six continents. Details here.

The Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) has launched a national effort to drive millions of dollars into arts-related businesses and cultural activities that will help transform some of America’s most distressed neighborhoods into safe, vibrant places of economic opportunity. The Kresge Foundation is providing $3.5 million in seed funding for this new “creative placemaking” initiative, which will fund projects that range from live/work spaces for artists to arts and entertainment businesses in struggling commercial corridors. The money will also be used for cultural programming such as music festivals that strengthen a community’s sense of identity and pride. Details here.